Tell Me A Story with Eddie Lenihan

This month, Eddie brings us an in-depth insight into the traditions surrounding Irish wakes. He speaks about how our relationship with death has changed over time, and the importance of honouring the rituals surrounding it. In particular, Eddie focuses on the games that would occur at wakes, amusements and customs that helped pass the long night with the departed. Arm wrestling, cards, rope climbing and dancing with the dead - al...

Eddie recites the frightening tale of what happens when two farmers from Quin in Co. Clare interfere with the Good People who called Corbally fort their home. On an October's evening, Pat and Sean were returning home from an unproductive day's hunting. On glimpsing a goose on the grounds of the fort, a rifle shot rang out and the two men thought their hunting luck was improving. What they didn't realise was the true nature of the b...

Dogs and cats and horses and rats. Eddie explores how these animals have long been the subject of Irish folklore stories, and what messages or foreboding they may bring. He explains the long held belief that dogs and horses have the gift of seeing the Other, especially in the dark of night. Eddie also recalls the terrible fate that may befall you if you offended a poet and they decided to send the rats on you out of spite.

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This month, Eddie speaks of the banshee in Irish culture, and the fear her wail instilled in those who heard it. The banshee, or the badhbh as she is also known, is a female spirit who gives a warning of impending death. Eddie reflects on a frightening story once told to him by an elderly man that left him convinced that the banshee is more than just a dark figure of the imagination.

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Eddie speaks about the macabre subject of graveyards in Ireland, and the rituals and piseogs that surround them. He explains the delicate process of burying a body, and what charms and objects may be placed in the grave, from a deck of cards to a fiddle bow. He also mentions the care required around one's behaviour in a graveyard, unless they wish to find that the next hole being dug is one intended for themselves.

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Continued from Eddie's previous discussion last month, Eddie picks up where he left off on his journey into the place names of Ireland. Listing each town through it's Irish translation, he continues to build a visual landscape from the names of towns and villages. Part 2 or a 2 part series.

This episode is kindly sponsored by Creative Ireland.

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This month, Eddie discusses the place names of Ireland. He traces how the Irish version of the name often contains important geographical references to the land itself. Eddie looks at the English version of these names, and explores what is being lost in the translation of the original language. Using over 50 examples of Irish towns and villages, Eddie paints a picture of the physical landscape of Ireland encoded through words and ...

This month, Eddie tackles the contentious subject of the Black and Tans and their arrival in Ireland in 1920. He traces their history as constables recruited into the Royal Irish Constabulary, and the reasons and incentives that brought them into the conflict. He explains how the terror they inflicted on the Irish public resulted in a profound sense of resentment and fear towards them. Burnings, raids and beatings, the Black and...

After months on hiatus spent working on his new book, Eddie returns with another episode of the podcast. This month, Eddie looks at the idea of Holy Wells in Ireland. He explores their origins in pagan worship and how they were assimilated into Christian culture over time. He speaks of some of the strange customs that visitors to the well would enact, from tying ribbons to nearby trees to circling the well clockwise three times....

Death has always been a mournful time. The transition from one world into another. In Ireland, the rituals and practices that surrounded a funeral and burial were both grand and precise. There was a respect there for the spirit of the dead person, and care was taken to ensure their passing was a marked event, grounded in both grief and celebration. The wake, the dressing of the body, and the digging of the grave all followed a ...

This month, Eddie continues his study of the old trades of Ireland. Things back then were made to last, where as things today are made to wear out. There was a dignity and quality behind the work, tools and utensils crafted to the highest standard by skilled trades people. The harness maker, the tinker, the hatter, the cooper, the potter, the basket-maker; Eddie explains how each trade was so necessary within the local communiti...

Trades-people formed the backbone of society in traditional Ireland, supplying the public with hand-made tools and services. This month, Eddie looks at some of the important trades that influenced old Irish life, and the folklore tales that accompanied them. Eddie speaks on the role of the blacksmith, the thatcher, the wheel maker, the tailor and the dress maker. Part 1 of a 2 part series.

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Ireland has a wide variety of native birds, full of colour and character. This month, Eddie discusses the superstitions and symbolic relevance that birds have played in Irish tradition and beliefs. From the crow, to the wren, to the robin - Eddie explores how each bird has it's own unique personality traits, and how we can learn to read their behaviour as harbingers and predictions of what may lie in the future.

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Eddie continues his discussion of roads in Ireland, this time reflecting on some of the stranger aspects of our routes and byways. He speaks of the significance of the public road, and how it acts as a symbol of safety to those who encounter the darker elements of the night. He mentions what happens to those who stand on the stray sod when out walking, and the confusion that ensues when alcohol is involved.

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This month, Eddie takes a historic look at the role that roads play in Ireland in all their complexity, beauty and ugliness. The windy and straight, the good and the bad, the up and the down. Eddie explores why certain roads in Co. Clare exist and what purpose they served both long ago in the past and in the present now.

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The Long Dark Winter Nights. An eerie time of the year, where those other things might be closer to us than we think. They take many forms, and often appear to us on a cold, dark road in Ireland. This month, Eddie recounts the eight types of spirits and supernatural creatures that one might meet, and give examples of stories where poor ordinary folk had encounters with the otherworldly.

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This month, Eddie speaks about Christmas customs and traditions in Ireland in the olden days. A time for preparations, rituals and feasts. The point of midnight on Christmas Eve is a special time, a moment when magic can happen. It's said that animals have the gift of speech, but make sure you don't listen in on their conversations.

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We're back at last. This month, Eddie speaks about the great trees of Ireland, and why they held such a profound spiritual power over the native Irish people - from druids, to saints and farmers. He discusses the traditions and folklore that surround Irish trees, and how the Irish translation of their names give us an important insight into the geography and history of the island of Ireland.

This episode is proudly part of the '...